Moradabad: FIR against Samajwadi Party leader on viral video of him offering Namaz near Circuit House.

Author, Shahbaz Anwar

Designation for BBC Hindi

Published 6 September 2026, 15:49 IST

Moradabad Police of Uttar Pradesh has registered an FIR against an elderly man on the basis of a video of him offering Namaz that is going viral on social media.

However, the police have not confirmed this video, nor has the BBC been able to independently verify this video.

The video is said to be of Bilari's Samajwadi Party MLA Mohammad Faheem Irfan's uncle and Samajwadi Party's district vice president Haji Mohammad Usman. It is seen in the video that he is offering namaz in front of a vehicle.

On the basis of this video, the complaint lodged on Friday at Majhola police station in Moradabad states, "A person named Haji Mohammad Usman was offering namaz behind a vehicle parked on the road leading to Moradabad Circuit House on September 3."

"This caused difficulty for vehicles and people to cross the road. Therefore, action should be taken in this matter."

Moradabad Police has registered a case against Haji Mohammad Usman under section 285 (obstructing public way or waterway) and section 292 (public nuisance) of BNS.

Congress and Samajwadi Party have condemned the BJP government of the state for registering the FIR.

Moradabad (city) Superintendent of Police Ranvijay Singh told BBC News Hindi that the JE of Circuit House located in Majhola police station area had given an application to Majhola police station.

Ranvijay Singh said, "The complainant has alleged in this application that he had received a video in which a person named Haji Usman was offering namaz unauthorized in the courtyard of the Circuit House. Due to such activities the traffic there was affected. On the basis of all these allegations, the police registered a case under certain sections and the matter is being investigated.

Haji Mohammad Usman has said that he has come to know that such a video is going viral in which he is being shown offering Namaz.

He said, "There is a question about the authenticity of the video that is going viral. There is no confirmation as to when it was made, where, who made it under what circumstances."

He said, “People seek solitude and offer namaz in public places. There should not be so much uproar over this. In our country, Saraswati Vandana is done before educational programs. Whenever any construction work takes place, Bhoomi Pujan is done. If questions are raised only on Namaz then it is a matter of complete discrimination.

He said, "Regarding the video that is being shown, I don't remember when it was from." But Namaz is not being offered by blocking anyone's way. Namaz is being offered where cars are parked, that is, in the parking lot. Actually, Namaz is being offered in the space behind the cars.

Haji Usman said that "Patriots and people of the Constitution are not afraid of such a case, because the Constitution has given the right to worship to everyone. Worship is not a matter of shame, it is a matter of pride. The government should cancel this case. This is sending a wrong message to the society."

He said that he keeps going to Moradabad, Namaz was offered at the Circuit House, but it is not known who made the video and when.

Haji Usman said, “Till now I have not received any information in this regard from the police station. I haven't even seen the video. I have seen some excerpts or pictures of the video. I cannot confirm its authenticity. Yes, it is true that I am visible in the video.

Chairman of Media and Publicity Department of Congress, Pawan Kheda has said, "I am sure that the invisible convoy of Yogi's devils would be passing through this road inside the Circuit House in Moradabad and they would have found this old man standing in the way, who was peacefully prostrating before his Lord."

"Perhaps that is why an FIR was registered against him under sections 285 (danger or obstruction in public way) and 292 (public nuisance) of the Indian Judicial Code."

"His second "crime"? He is Haji Mohammad Usman. Samajwadi Party district vice president and Bilari MLA Mohammad Faheem Irfan's uncle and a Muslim. What a shame."

Samajwadi Party's media cell posted the video on Twitter and wrote, "It was time for Namaz, this old man offered Namaz silently in the parking area without any disturbance, remembered his loved one in his religious way, but the BJP government, which was looking for a Hindu-Muslim angle, immediately lodged an FIR against them. Just imagine how disgusting and to what level of dirty the BJP can think, have you ever seen such a thing?"

In May 2026, the Allahabad High Court had said that offering namaz or organizing large-scale religious events on public land cannot be claimed as a legal right.

The court had said that the right to religious freedom given in the Constitution is subject to public order and the rights of other people.

The court had made this comment while rejecting a petition seeking permission to offer Namaz on a land in Ikona village of Sambhal district of Uttar Pradesh. The division bench of Justice Garima Prasad and Justice Saral Srivastava had rejected the petition of a person named Asin.

Asin claimed that the land was her personal property and she had sought protection and permission from the administration to offer namaz there.

Asin had asserted her ownership rights over the land on the basis of a registered gift deed dated June 16, 2023. However, the state government said that the land is recorded as public land of the population in the revenue records and the petitioners cannot prove their legal ownership.

The court said that the right to religious freedom is not unlimited. If religious activity affects public order, movement of people or the rights of other people, it can be banned or regulated under law.

The court also made it clear that public land cannot be used by any individual or group as its own right for regular religious events.